


I'll Always Be With You

by seokmykiss



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: AU, Angst, Canon Compliant, Character Death, M/M, NCT love each other so much, TiMER AU, car crash, there's not much markhyuck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-31
Updated: 2018-08-31
Packaged: 2019-07-04 20:05:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15848415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seokmykiss/pseuds/seokmykiss
Summary: AU where everyone is born with a timer on their wrist that counts down to their deaths. Donghyuck keeps his hidden.





	I'll Always Be With You

Lee Donghyuck was born on June 6, 2000. As per customs, the doctors give him the proper vaccinations and check his vitals to make sure everything is okay with the baby. The last thing they do is check the timer on little Donghyuck’s wrist, writing down the years, hours, minutes, and seconds until the baby is scheduled to die. They wrap him up in a little yellow blanket and hand him to his mother, who is already crying over the newborn.

They don’t check his wrist immediately.

It’s not until their family visits do they check his wrist, and immediately burst into tears. 19 years, 8 months, 12 days, 6 hours, 43 minutes, 21 seconds...20 seconds.

With such a short life planned for the boy, his parents vow to give him the best life they can.

* * *

 

Donghyuck joins SM Entertainment in 2012. His parents cry when they get the call saying their baby made it. Donghyuck cries, too, knowing how short his time is going to be with SM but still happy he has the opportunity.

When it comes time to fill out the paperwork, his future bosses ask about his timer. Donghyuck hesitantly tells them, making the men pause from writing. Donghyuck knows they’re debating whether or not to sign someone who has such short time left, but he promises to work hard while he has the chance. They reluctantly agree and continue with the paperwork.

* * *

 

Donghyuck meets Mark Lee shortly after joining SM. They get off to a rough start, Mark not knowing how to handle Donghyuck’s sassy tendencies and often rude jokes. They fight more often than not, but despite that end up being the closest of all the rookies. They’re inseparable, never finding one without the other. Even when they’re filming for something, the two are together. It’s no surprise to Donghyuck when he realizes he likes the older as more than a best friend.

He doesn’t act on the crush at first, thinking it will pass over time. When they’re about to debut and he realizes it’s more than just a small crush, he still doesn’t act on it. Donghyuck knows that Mark’s timer has a long time before it runs out. Mark doesn’t know what Donghyuck’s is.

* * *

 

Donghyuck- _Haechan_ -debuts on July 7, 2016. He’s already lined up for another debut in a month, too. He feels on top of the world, and for now he can push any thoughts of his short countdown to the back of his mind.

NCT is Donghyuck’s second family. He loves them all, but he struggles showing it besides the teasing. He always asks for kisses, but gets pushed away with a laugh nearly every time. Donghyuck doesn’t mind, though. He knows they love him, even when they scold him for being too sassy.

* * *

 

Donghyuck comes out as gay to the rest of NCT in the summer of 2017. He figures there’s no point in hiding it any more. He’s only got two years left anyways. Not that the rest of NCT know that. He still hasn’t shown his timer to anyone. Taeyong almost saw it on accident, after Donghyuck had forgot his shirt after showering. He had rushed to his room to grab a sweatshirt, but bumped into Taeyong on the way there. The maknae of 127 had hid his wrist behind his back, not wanting their leader to see it. He was successful, the leader not even looking down at his wrist or giving him a questioning look.

The responses to Donghyuck coming out are positive, everyone is filled with support and love, and they even give him the cheek kisses and hugs he constantly craves. There’s only one person who doesn’t give him a kiss.

Mark.

It hurts at first, but then Mark hugs him tight later that night and promises that nothing will change between them.

He lied.

Mark and Donghyuck start fighting more during that summer. It’s dumb things that they keep arguing over, like who left the chips opened or someone’s phone alarm being too loud. It’s not until they’re doing promotions with NCT Dream that it gets bad. Mark makes a comment, a dumb one.

“Is being emotional a side effect of being gay?”

Donghyuck wants to scream, cry, or even punch Mark. Instead he grabs his pillow and leaves the room without looking back. A few minutes later, Doyoung comes into Mark and Donghyuck’s room, giving the younger a glare while he puts his pillow on Donghyuck’s bed.

They don’t talk after that. If they do, it’s just arguments. Fansites catch the argument in photos, and their fans wonder what’s going on between the infamous best friends.

One night, after Jaehyun is asleep, Donghyuck watches his timer tick down. 1 year, 5 months, 10 days, 3 hours, 27 minutes, 42 seconds. He thinks about Mark and his feelings towards his best friend, he thinks about NCT and how he has to leave them soon, his fans and how devastated they’ll be, and his family and how much they’ll miss him. Tears fall down the side of his face and land on the pillow, but he doesn’t pay attention to them. He needs to make his last year or so last.

A week later, Donghyuck comes to Mark.

“Can we talk?”

Mark nods, and the two find a place away from everyone else. Mark apologizes first, rambling about how he didn’t mean what he said and he wishes they would stop fighting. Somewhere in the midst of his rambling, Donghyuck catches a slip of the tongue.

“-I’m just so jealous of how you can be so proud of who you are and not be ashamed that you like boys. I wish I could be like that-”

“What?” Donghyuck is confused, but hopeful.

Mark realizes what he said. Instead of hiding it, he nods a little. “I’m bisexual… and i’m in love with you, Hyuck.”

Donghyuck is speechless.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. I just want to stop fighting,” Mark continues.

Donghyuck moves forward and hugs Mark tightly. “I love you, too.”

Mark wraps his arms around Donghyuck’s waist and holds him, relieved the fighting is over and his feelings are reciprocated.

They stop fighting after that, instead spending even more time than usual together.

* * *

 

Donghyuck’s timer is partially revealed on accident. He had been wearing long-sleeves for their performance and didn’t put any makeup on it. At some point, though, his sleeve had slipped down enough and a fansite had caught the timer. The numbers couldn’t be seen, but everyone notices how there’s only five spots and not six. There’s only 9 months left.

NCT has a group meeting in 127’s dorm, with Donghyuck in the center of the room. Everyone has grim expressions, not wanting to believe that their mood-maker has less than a year left. Mark has red-rimmed eyes, having burst into tears the moment he saw the photos.

“Haech-” the leader stops himself. “Donghyuck. What does your timer say?”

Donghyuck chews on his bottom lip and hesitates, not wanting to reveal it quite yet. He knows he doesn’t have a choice, though, and lifts up his sleeve to read the timer.

“9 months, 5 days, 2 hours…” he doesn’t get to finish. Everyone has started crying. They’re leaning on to each other for support, and Donghyuck’s heart aches in his chest.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Jeno asks, tears running down his cheeks.

“I didn’t know how. How am I supposed to tell the people I love that I’ll only be here for 19 years?” Donghyuck asks, but his voice cracks.

“Did you ever plan on telling us?” Johnny asks, voice hoarse. The second oldest has always seen Donghyuck as a younger brother, even more than the other members.

Donghyuck shakes his head. “No.”

Mark tucks his head into Donghyuck’s neck and sobs. His shoulders shake with the force, and Donghyuck can feel his heart breaking in his chest.

“Our managers know, right? And they never told us?” Taeyong questions.

“My parents and I asked them not to.”

“Shouldn’t you be with them? You have...you have less than a year left,” Yuta points out, but he struggles to say it.

“I’ve already talked to them about my last year. I’m going to visit them during Christmas time and not take part in end-of-year schedules, then I’ll come back to you guys,” Donghyuck explains. “I want to be with you guys when it happens.”

There’s more sobs, and Mark can’t lift his head up.

“Well. We promise to make these last months the best, okay? When it happens,” Taeyong takes in a deep, shaky breath, “we’ll be with you.”

They continue to promote as usual. SM never releases an official statement about Donghyuck’s timer, not wanting the fans to focus on it. Dream has a comeback, then 127. China debuts and Mark and Donghyuck get to spend more time together without scheduling conflicts. At Christmas time, they all go home to visit their families. SM releases a statement that Donghyuck won’t participate in the end-of-the-year activities, and fans immediately become concerned on how much time their full sun has left.

When Donghyuck returns in January, he’s bombarded with hugs and kisses. They all cry together, knowing that they have only a month left with him. At night, Mark and Donghyuck curl up together and talk about their future, what could’ve been. They cry and kiss and hold each other tight, wanting to stay together forever. For a late Christmas present, Donghyuck gives Mark a silver ring with their initials engraved into it.

“I’ll always be with you.”

* * *

 

Haechan’s last comeback with NCT is the best one, in his opinion. It’s all eighteen of them, performing a new song together and going on various variety shows and doing as many V-lives as possible. They’re all so happy with the success of the comeback, they forget about the timer.

They’re on their way to another schedule. Donghyuck and Mark are giggling together in the back seats, Jisung suffering on the other side of Mark. Jeno, Jaemin, and Renjun are in the middle seats, talking about the new anime that’s coming out later that year. Chenle is in the front, laughing loudly at the three in the middle. The other members are in the vans in front of them, high on life with each other.

No one is expecting it when the back of Dream’s van is suddenly rear-ended.

* * *

 

Lee Donghyuck dies on February 19th, 2020. His family knows the day by heart and is expecting the news. The rest of NCT wails at the loss of their beloved member, and NCTzens everywhere hold memorials for him. Donghyuck dies happy, surrounded by the people he loves most and knowing that his true love will always have a piece of him.

**Author's Note:**

> this is probably the most angst i've ever wrote, and i've def never wrote character death before. please leave comments and kudos!
> 
> my twitter: @seokmykiss


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